The Poetry of Work, Rest, and Play

The Golden Triangle, part 2
By Terah Kathryn Collins, Founder and Instructor

This poetic inquiry into work, rest, and play is a heart-centered invitation for you to quietly, deeply, assess your inner and outer balance. The term ‘the Way’ refers to how you personally sustain – or regain – harmony in your life.

Your heart, the sanctuary of heaven and earth, is the home of your true self. As you open your heart, the wonder and majesty of life expands. Your spirit sheds any dark cloud of amnesia and you soar once again into the eternal expanses of your imagination. Your body awakens from the anesthesia of the past, transforming numbness into streams of pleasure. The voices of your senses become crystal clear, guiding you to further joy. Reunited once again with the full circle of life, your heart becomes the enchanted abode where heaven and earths’ beloved offspring – you – can thrive.

When your heart is open, you become the conduit of heaven and earth. Through you, they are prolific! They cause inspiration and sensuality to rhythmically flow through you, igniting your creativity. You see the rolling landscapes of music, hear the poetry of paintings, savor the taste of colors, and the relish the bouquet of words. You become the explorer of your own endless wilderness. Their synergy within you enhances the potency of your work, the depth of your rest, and the joy of your play.

Harmony is made from the innumerable threads of pleasure that color everyday life. The more it can be intricately woven into the matrix of your daily lifestyle, the better. Consider your work, rest, and play as the trinity of influences that contribute to the tapestry of your life. By balancing them, you restore the natural grace of being a human being.

There is often an active, laser-like quality about work that calls you to be productive and accomplish specific time-dependent tasks requiring a focused output of energy. This can be full of the pleasures of manifestation, and the fulfillment of completion. Because you are the steward of your own well-being, it is up to you to seek out and magnify the thread of joy in every moment of work.
To do this, be always generous with the gift of time. You are meant to be life enjoying itself – life, loving life. Hurrying through life is like a strong wind rattling the windows and doors of your heart. When such a wind howls continually, your harmony is swept away. You leave the pleasant ambiance of the Way and enter the storm whenever you squeeze time into a forced march. You are a human being, not a human doing. Even during your work, let hurrying become a thing of the past and leave time to breathe between your commitments. Enchantment awaits you there.

While work is focused on productivity, play naturally follows the amorphous slipstream of pleasure. Embrace the activities and pastimes that bring you joy, feasting on the deliciousness of enjoying time with friends and family, cavorting with the ever-flowing font of your creativity, and relishing the pastimes that make your heart sing.

Rest, sleep, introspection, and meditation are dedicated to sustaining your tranquility. Here, the space opens up to commune with your inner helpers whose whispers can only be heard in silence. Your daydreams and night dreams are their gifts to you; numinous messages guiding you along the Way. Rest gives you time to lay in your own arms and feel what you are made of. Your connection with heaven and earth is deepened – or restored – so that your heart remains tranquil and open to the pleasures of your work and play.

Attend to your rest, play, and work as equals in importance. When one hierarchically reigns over the others for long, you sacrifice your connection with your true self. Balance sustains harmony.

Treasure the blessings inherent in every moment. Treat your spirit and your flesh like the lovers they are. Let your imagination soar, gather what was once unimaginable, and return ecstatic. Invite your creative genius to shape every moment. Be gracious to your body and offer her what she asks for – a walk in the sunshine, a rest in the middle of the day, a favorite flavor. It’s not just taking the time to stop and smell the roses; it’s taking the time to fully commune with the mystery of the roses, and all of life. Make this your daily practice. Your kind attendance to your lifestyle restores your heart and calls forth the full expression of who you are.

Your heavenly imagination and earthly pleasure-seeking are expressions of your true self. Kiss the past goodbye and let it go. Reclaim the wings of your imagination and ride the currents of feeling into each moment. The sanctuary within your heart isn’t so much thought as felt into being. Fill each one with love, love, and more love.

As you bring balance into your lifestyle, it takes on a vitality of its own. It breathes life into you. Tend to it and be ever enchanted with all that surrounds you. Drink in the layers of astonishing beauty your choices create. They are solely and eternally yours.
This is where it begins. As your tranquility deepens, the inspired brilliance of heaven and the sweet sensuality of earth integrate within you. You become luminosity and ecstasy entwined. Your capacity to embody love stretches into all moments. This is your future becoming present, your true self, returning to the sanctuary of your heart. It is the Way.

Read The Golden Triangle, part 1 here:

http://westernschooloffengshui.com/2014/04/the-golden-triangle-part-1/